Ninohe
is a small town/city located in far north of Iwate Prefecture with a population of about 30,000 people. It is a picturesque city, with a more-or-less developed core area along the Mabechi River, and less-developed farmland extending from it. It is defined by Route 4, the major non-expressway route from Tokyo to Aomori, and the two railroads running through the city. It is approximately 2 hours from Morioka, and one hour from Hachinohe, in Aomori prefecture. Transportation Getting in To/from the airport Ninohe is almost equidistant between Misawa Airport in Aomori, and Iwate-Hanamaki airport in Hanamaki. By train Ninohe is served by three train stations. Ninohe station, Tomai Station, and Kintaichi Onsen Station. Ninohe station is on both the Iwate-Ginza railway (IGR) line, as well as the Tohoku Shinkansen. Tohoku Shinkansen Ninohe is the second to last stop on the Tohoku Shinkansen, before Hachinohe. The train offers daily service to both Hachinohe and Tokyo. Ninohe is about 3 hours from Tokyo Station. Ninohe Station Shinaksen Timetable (In Japanese) While the shinkansen is convienent, it is rather expensive. Ninohe-Morioka (26 Minutes): 3,410円 Ninohe-Hachinohe (11 Minutes): 2,870円 Ninohe-Tokyo (179 Minutes on the fastest train): 15,000円 It is possible, and indeed reccommended, for the shorter routes to purchase tickets for 'Standing Only', for slightly cheaper fares. For instance, the cost of Ninohe-Morioka becomes 2,900円 Iwate-Ginza Railroad The IGR is the local train line running from Hachinohe to Morioka. It is operated independantly from JR, and charges higher prices for local service. Ninohe-Hachinohe (40 minutes): 2,870円 Ninohe-Morioka (68 Minutes): 2,030円 By bus Ninohe have local bus services, run by Iwate Kenpoku Bus, and JR Bus Tohoku. Ninohe station is the primary terminus for buses in the area. Iwate-Kenpoku runs a service from Ninohe station to Kunohe. JR Bus Tohoku serves Karumai, Joboji, Kintaichi Onsen, and the Kamitomai area. ALT's living in Ninohe often use JR buses to get to work in distant schools. By car The closest interchange to downtown Ninohe is the Ichinohe I.C., Hachinohe Expressway. However, since its absorbtion of Joboji Village in 2006, Ninohe now has its own interchange- though far from the core area of the city. The expressway is a reasonably fast way of getting out of Ninohe, though expensive. *Ichinohe I.C --> Morioka: 2,150 yen　(57 Minutes) *Ichonohe I.C. --> Hachinohe: 1,200 yen (30 Minutes) *Ichinohe I.C. --> Sendai Airport: 6,750 yen (3 Hours, 11 Minutes) *Ichinohe I.C. --> Tokyo:　12,350 yen (6 Hours, 53 Minutes) There are substantial discounts on expressway tolls, but only if one enrolls in the ETC electronic payment program. Ninohe is also on National Route 4, the major roadway connecting Tokyo to Aomori City. It takes approximately 1 hour to get to Hachinohe from downtown Ninohe, and 2.5 hours to get to Morioka. The maximum speed limit on "the four" is 50 kph. Typically, due to the cost of tolls and fuel costs per the higher speed on the expressway, ALTs in the area stick to route 4 if they can spare the time. Getting around Ninohe is a long, narrow city. Most restaurants and services are found either along Route 4, or Main Street (also called "Odori"). Main street is also prefectural route 274, though this name is seldom used. Orientation The "center" of Ninohe is called Iwayabashi (岩谷橋). This is the intersection of Iwate prefectural Route 274 (North-South) and Route 24 (East-West). From this central intersection, you can orient yourself in Ninohe. There are two bridges on the south and west of this intersection, hence the name. From Iwayabashi *Route 24 East- This is the road to Kunohe-mura. This road also leads to Ninohe City Hall, and the Fukuoka schools. *Route 24 West- This road quickly crossed Ninohe Ohashi (大橋), and leads to the "Civic Core" of Ninohe. The national government, prefectural government, Ninohe Sports Center, and Ninohe Civic center are all found near this road. This also leads to Route Four. *Route 274 North- This is Main Street for Ninohe. Leading north toward Aomori Prefecture, the main shopping area of Ninohe (in Hirono), the prefectural hospital, and the Nisatai and Kintaichi neighborhoods. *Route 274 South- Also Main Street, moreover the "Main Drag" of Ninohe. Most restaurants and "nightlife" are concentrated in this area. Leads south to the Ninohe Police Station, the Ishkiridokoro neighboorhood, and eventually Ichinohe and the rest of Iwate prefecture. Working In Public Education JET Programme Placements At the time of writing, there are two Prefectural ALT placements and one Municipal placement in Ninohe-City. There is also one ALT from Interac placed on a work consignment contract with the municipal government. Prefectural ALTs Ninohe has two ALTs in the employ of the Iwate Prefectural Board of Education. One ALT is placed at Fukuoka Senior High School, and also Ibonai High School in Kunohe-village. Fukuoka is widely considered to be at a high standard of academic quality for Northern Iwate, though not at the same level as the Morioka area high schools. Fukuoka is also renowned for it's strong baseball and kendo programs. The second Ninohe prefectural ALT is placed at Fukuoka Technical High Schoolhttp://www2.iwate-ed.jp/fut-h/, and Fukuoka High School- Joboji branchhttp://www2.iwate-ed.jp/job-h/. Municipal ALTs Ninohe City, in the past, was served by 3 seperate ALTs. Two working for the city, and one provided by the prefectural government. The current situation, has only two ALT's teaching at all 15 Ninohe schools. Each of the two ALT's is given three of Ninohe's 6 Junior High schools. The *current ALT placement schedule for Ninohe: Schools Serviced by Municipal ALTs ' * *Fukuoka Jr. High--''The biggest school in the district, with a wide range of student levels *Kamitomai Jr. High-- *Nisatai Jr. High--'' With approx. 50 students, with a good level of English'' *Fukuoka Primary School-- Around 200 students. A brand-new school with a strong interest in Elementary English activities *Nisatai Primary School-- 120 Students, A relatively new facility *Chuo Primary School-- '' 200 Students. Not as keen on their English, but by no means bad. '' *Shimotomai Primary School-- '' 13-15 Students. ALTs are only sent to this school twice perm term. Activities are often centered on games and "Internationalization"'' *Ninohe-Nishi Primary School '''Schools Serviced by an ALT placed by Interac *Joboji Jr. High *Gohenchi Jr. High *Kintaichi Jr. High--'' The Northermost school in Ninohe, with approximately 150 students.'' *Joboji Primary School *Gohenchi Primary School *Kintaichi Primary School--'' Also in North Ninohe. 150 Students. Kintaichi Primary has an in-house English curriculum that is quite good. '' *Ishikiridokoro Primary School Incoming/Outgoing JETs All 4 Ninohe-City ALTs (Prefectural and Municipal) are not recontacting for the 2008-2009 School year. Foreign community There is no foreign community in Ninohe. Typcally, ALT's in this town meet with other ALT's from the northern Iwate area. While the community of ALT's is quite strong and supportive, Ninohe is not especially "international." However, by no means is Ninohe unwelcoming to the few foreigners who live here. ALT's are quite often recognized as teachers and accorded a great deal of respect. Hachinohe and Morioka are common weekend/getaway destinations. Sightseeing Places to visit [[m:w:ja:%E5%A4%A9%E5%8F%B0%E5%AF%BA|'Tendaichi Temple']] Tendaichi Temple is a famous buddhist temple built in 728 CE (Year 5 of the Jinki Era). Festivals Ninohe Matsuri Ninohe Matsuri is held annually in early September. It is a three-day event. The event centers around a parade through central Ninohe of parade floats, called Dashi (山車- literally "Mountain Car"). These floats are sponsored by local neighborhood associations, as well as one City Hall sponsored float. The floats are built, from scratch, every year by the sponosoring teams. Floats feature teams of children playing taiko drums, and teams of men pushing the non-motorized floats through the city. On the first night, the floats all gather in front of Ninohe Sports Center for an exhibition, culminating in the playing of the "Hundred Man Drums" (百人太鼓), where all the floats play a single rhythmn, culminating in a fireworks display over the Mabechi River. The second day has a parade during the day, with the final event being Ninohe's "Long Dance" 流し踊り. The town song, and the regional song are played over the town loudspeaker system, and teams from businesses, schools, and organizations around the city dance in unison from down main street. The final day has one final parade, of shorter length. ALT Participation As for ALTs taking part in the festivities, there is a tradition of ALTs dancing with their contracting organizations in the Nagashi Odori. In the past, the Iwate Prefectural Board of Education branch in Ninohe has invited the High School ALTs to join their team with the Ninohe Iwate Prefectural Governement Team, while City Hall includes their municipal ALT. Recently, the prefectural government has not included the ALTs they sponsor with their team, and the Municpal ALT has invited other ALTs to join the city hall dancing team. With regard to taiko drumming, ALTs must show more initiaive in finding a team to play with. Practice is typically every day in the evening, with added training on weekends. ALTs should note that many neighboorhood associations have longstanding traditions, dating back many years with the floats. Even if one finds a team, and invests significant amounts of time to training and learning how to play taiko- you may still be relegated to pushing the float. This all being said- Ninohe Matsuri is an excellent, excellent way to get involved with your community. Other highlights include the return of many people to Ninohe who have left, as many people come back to see the festival from various places in Japan. Festival Food is also delicious, with street vendors selling yakisoba, sausages, and a myriad of Japanese foods. Shopping Supermarkets Department stores There is not a proper "Department Store" in Ninohe. The closest approximation is Nicoa, which is connected to the JOIS. It could be compared to an American Wal-Mart or a Tesco Extra. Though, the quality of goods sold there is questionable, and sizes for foreigners are most definitely not a priority. Convenience stores Home & Garden stores Book shops Stores do not sell foreign books in Ninohe. Nicoa has a small section of manga for sale, as does Aixs. The closest foreign book store is in Morioka. Others Eating Ninohe is an excellent city for eating out. While most western food (outside of Italian) is hard to get, all in all: Ninohe is a great place to grab dinner and lunch. Fast food Ninohe does not have any western Fast Food restaurants. Ramen Ninohe has many excellent Ramen shops. Of note are "Ninohe's Top 5" Ramen restaurants, offereing unique takes on classic Japanese ramen. Japanese food Central and Southern Ninohe covering from Fukuoka southward Northern Ninohe covering areas north of Hirono, including Kintaichi Foreign food Foreign food in Ninohe has a name: Italian. Outside of several excellent Italian restaurants, the closest foreign food is either Hachinohe (Thai, Indian, spanish) or Morioka (Indian, Mexican) Outside Ninohe These are some places outside of town frequented by Ninohe ALT's that deserve special mention. Drinking Izakayas Bars Living Ninohe is a very pleasant place to live, and strikes a balance, for better or for worse, between "inaka" and city life. The major city in Northern Iwate, many services converge on Ninohe, but the city has a far from urban feel. Banks Banking in Ninohe is limited to the Postal Savings system, and local banks. Major Japanese national banks (Mitsubishi-UFJ, Mitsui-Sumitomo, Mizuho) are not present in Ninohe, though their cash cards work in most ATM's here. Most ALTs in the area use Bank of Iwate. Sometimes, they will also have a Postal Savings account as well. Post offices Postal Service is useful not only for mail, but also for the excellent Postal Savings system, which can be used even on bank holidays Japan. Medical facilities Libraries Hair dressers Sports facilities Travel agents The closest travel agents to Ninohe are in Morioka or Hachinohe. Occassionally, representitives of those agencies will come to the schools. Map External links *Ninohe City Homepage (English) *Ninohe City Homepage (Japanese) Category:Articles using Google maps Category:Iwate Prefecture Category:Local knowledge